how can you extract an array from the a database and then use it?

JLerster

Say you wanted to store this in a database

$a = array( 'color' => 'red',
            'taste' => 'sweet',
            'shape' => 'round',
            'name'  => 'apple',

      );

but then later pull it out and then use it in your scripts. How can you do this? The only way I could think of is pulling it out, wriying it to a file and then including the file into the script. Is there a more easy way to do this?

cahva

I quess you could use eval() function.

mcgruff

implode() into a string if you don't need the keys or serialize() if you do (see manual for details on functions)

superwormy

OK... so your table in the database would look like this:

Table - Fruits
ID, color, taste, shape, name

Assuming MySQL here...
www.php.net/mysql
www.php.net/mysql_connect
www.php.net/mysql_query
www.php.net/mysql_fetch_array
www.php.net/mysql_close
www.php.net/mysql_select_db

$query = "INSERT INTO fruits SET color = 'red', taste = 'sweet', shape = 'round', name = 'apple'");

mysql_quey ($query);

JLerster

Originally posted by superwormy
OK... so your table in the database would look like this:

Table - Fruits
ID, color, taste, shape, name

Assuming MySQL here...
www.php.net/mysql
www.php.net/mysql_connect
www.php.net/mysql_query
www.php.net/mysql_fetch_array
www.php.net/mysql_close
www.php.net/mysql_select_db

$query = "INSERT INTO fruits SET color = 'red', taste = 'sweet', shape = 'round', name = 'apple'");

mysql_quey ($query);

I dont think you understand what Im geing at. Why make 4 differint tables (color, taste, shape, sweat) when you can hold all of this info in a single array in one table? Im not saying I only want one table in my database that holds one big array, I just think it would make things like storing category id_#s more simple. Imagine the amout of tables you whould have to have to have a [enter application here] with 4 or 6 category levels (main, sub, sub - sub and so on). By using an array it could be like this

$categories = Array(
   ['Computer'] => category_id
   ['Computer_subs'] =>  Array
								(   ['Hardware'] => category_id
									['hardware_subs'] => Array
							     		                      (   ['HardDives'] => category_id
	 										            		  [harddrive_subs] => Array
	  																	                 	(   [SCSI] => categry_id
																								[SCSI_subs] => Array
	  																	                 		(						[MAC] => categry_id


																													)
																						)
														  )
							)
);

then you get your [what ever] like this

[include array file OR pull array from database here]
$cat_id = $category['comupter']['harware']['harddrives']['SCSI']['MAC'];
$sql = "SELECT * FROM products WHERE cat_id = "$cat_id"";
$query = mysql_query($sql);
$products = mysql_fetch_array($query);

NOTE: $cat_id wraped itself above>

Weedpacket

I think mcgruff's suggestion of [man]serialize[/man] would be the most straightforward way of turning a complex data structure into a string.

ahundiak

I don't quite understand what you are trying to do. superwormy's approach used only one table with 4 columns, not 4 tables.

But it's possible that you object to the use of 4 columns?

You can do this
CREATE TABLE object
(
object_id INTEGER,
name CHAR(20),
value CHAR(80)
);
This let's you assign an unlimited number of attributes to a given object. All attributes belonging to the same object will have the same object_id.

There are some downfalls to this approach but there in fact some applications that use it.

superwormy

Few things, first of all, we'll take your way of doing it.

Now, a year down the road the boss says ' I want people to be able to search for things based on their shape / size / color '

Well, if we're using your strategy, we're screwed. We can't do any simple search to be able to search by shape, or size, or color! We could use a LIKE '%shapehere%' statement, but its slow, and definitally not an elegant solution.

If we were using mine, we can just search on one field, for an exact match. Or better yet, if we have another table of shapes:

Shapes
ID, shape

And change the original table to:
ID, color, shape_ID ( and add an Index to this if you want ), taste

We can do super fast searches and dont' have to worry about ugly LIKE statements, not to mention my way is normalized adn uses good database practices that the intellectual / educated type like too.

Secondly... I didn't use 4 tables. I used one table with 4 columns... not sure where you got that...

Also, why make a table with one column when you can make one with 4? It's not like 4 columsn will be stressing the database any...

Also, multiple tables is GENERALLY ( but not always ) a very bad idea for a bunch of categories. Usually its done like this:

Table - Categories -
ID, parent_ID, depth, name

So, for the base categories you have:

1, 0, 0, Computers
2, 0, 0, Fruits

Then you have subcategories of computers:

3, 1 ( the ID of computers is it's parent ), 1 ( its one level deep ), Hardware
4, 1, 1, Software
5, 2, 1, Apples
6, 2, 1, Oranges
7, 2, 1, Bananas

Then subcategories of those subcategories:

8, 3 ( hardware is it's parent ), 2 ( two levels deep now ), Video Cards
9, 3, 2, Motherboards
10, 3, 2, SCSI Cards

etc. etc. etc.

BUT, if you insist, these functions will be helpful to you:

www.php.net/serialize
www.php.net/var_dump

Most likely, you'll have to write yoru own little arcance foreach() looop to loop through the array and build a set of stuff like you did... but I'll warn ya, you're doing it the hard way :-)